


Handy man

by DangerRollins



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Neighbors, Domestic Fluff, Falling In Love, Family Feels, Fluff, Friendship/Love, Idiots in Love, M/M, Team Family, carl just wants them to get together already, some characters tagged are just mentioned, summer nostalgia vibe dude
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-26
Updated: 2018-04-09
Packaged: 2019-04-08 17:58:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,527
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14110902
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DangerRollins/pseuds/DangerRollins
Summary: Rick isn't as dumb as Daryl probably thinks he is and Carl isn't as dumb as Rick probably thinks he is.





	1. Chapter 1

Rick hasn't ever been all that great with electronics. Best he could do was work a smartphone and flip through TV channels. Anything beyond that was out of his league. Fooling with electronic devices was a nuisance for him and that's why he left it to the professionals.

"Dad, I'm pretty sure that if you just plugged in the--"

"Carl, last time I tried to fix the TV myself I ended up breaking the little Wifi box--Let's just leave things alone until Daryl gets here."

Daryl Dixon spent more time in the Grimes household than the Grimes' did, probably. Every other day there was something going wrong with the TV or the computer or the air conditioner or the microwave or even the car. Most of their stuff was pretty worn and torn, but it wasn't as bad off as Rick Grimes made it seem.

The computer usually just needed rebooting, the TV usually just needed to be put back into code, the car usually only needed an oil change. These were all things that Rick could do himself if he really wanted to, but he always called Daryl over to 'fix' whatever was 'broken'.

Daryl didn't mind it one bit. He lived close enough to them that it was only a five-minute drive, Rick always made sure to pay him a fair enough amount for even the smallest and easiest of tasks, no matter how much he objected to it, Rick was a good guy who he genuinely enjoyed spending time with and his kids were nice enough as well; Every time he walked into the house he felt like he was home, he felt like they were his family and he really liked that, and above all else, he enjoyed spending time with Rick. He loved going to Rick's house, he looked forward to it more than anything. He loved the phone call he always got from Rick when he needed something.

"Hey Daryl, I hope I'm not bothering you and I know you're probably getting sick and tired of me calling you for everything," He'd let out a nervous laugh before clearing his throat. "But you know me and electronics don't get along so well," And then he'd continue on, telling Daryl what the problem was, usually something terribly small that Carl could easily fix if Rick truly couldn't. Daryl was no fool, he knew Rick was only calling him because he wanted to see him, but he didn't mind it. He'd go over there and he'd 'Fix' whatever needed fixing and then he'd sit down and have a glass of lemonade and talk about sports that neither of them was particularly interested in and he'd talk to Carl about how school was going and he'd play with Judith as much as her little heart desired.

If it was anyone else, he'd be pissed. He would've cut this shit out in a second, as soon as he noticed it.

Daryl Dixon wasn't one that was interested in relationships. He'd avoided them at all costs for the majority of his life, never feeling like he could handle one. He'd been through some rough shit during his upbringing and as a result, his childhood and teen years weren't filled with two-month relationships and false I love you's. Early adulthood hadn't been much better for him. He'd still been dealing with the effects of his childhood, not to mention all the newfound drama his brother had brought him. They'd been living together for a long while, moving out with one another and opting to share a small house just to make paying the bills a little easier--Of course, it didn't, since Merle always spent his money on drugs. Eventually, he was arrested and while Daryl was busy working his ass off to scrape up the money to bail him out, he didn't have time worry about a relationship.

That became a routine. Merle getting bailed out with Daryl's hard earned money only to start buying and using drugs again and getting arrested again. Then, he died. Overdosed. Of course he did.

Dealing with his brother's death had taken up a lot of his time as well. By the time he'd finally finished grieving, he'd barely even heard of the word relationship. He wasn't looking, but someone found him.

A lady had moved in next door to him, she was nice and he liked her, but she was more of a friend. He wanted to protect her, and he did. He handled her abusive husband for her, got sent to jail for it, got out and got sent to jail again after beating the shit out of the man's asshole brother who'd decided to kidnap Sophia, the lady's daughter, for revenge. After getting out the second time, things were complicated between he and the nice lady, Carol. She really liked him, and he really liked her, but the time wasn't right. Daryl had skeletons in his closet and so did she. Neither of them was in a position to be starting a relationship, and Daryl didn't feel like he deserved her or anyone else at the time.

They'd remained friends, and their relationship didn't turn into anything more, and now years later, they were both okay with that. Carol had found Ezekial who she'd fallen in love with soon after meeting him, and Daryl had an attractive man calling him for every little thing he could.

Daryl was now in a pretty good state of mind, the best he'd ever been in at least. He was still in the healing process and he probably would be for the rest of his life, but he was better now, and only getting even better.

He was still quiet and to himself, still not entirely sure if he truly deserved a relationship, but willing to try it out. He'd known Rick for a long time and he loved his family, and he liked being apart of his life.

Carl was leaning against the wall next to the TV, arms crossed and eyes narrowed as he pouted his lips slightly. This was getting to be ridiculous--No, this had gotten way past the point of ridiculous! Literally, all the TV needed was to be plugged in again. That's it.

Carl knew his dad had probably been the one to unplug it, and he also knew that he only did it because he wanted Daryl to come over again. What he didn't know was why he couldn't just cut the crap and invite him over at least as a friend, just to hang out.

Carl knew they were way more than friends, but hell, it'd be a start wouldn't it?

"You know I'm fine with you and Daryl right?" Carl questioned suddenly, wondering if Rick was holding back because he was worried that he would be offended by the relationship. That most certainly was not the case. He wanted his dad to be happy, and Daryl too. They both deserved it.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean I'm fine with you two being together."

"We're not together," Rick shrugged, trying to be nonchalant. Carl rolled his eyes and huffed. "That's the problem.You should be."

"Carl--"

"You want him and he wants you. You're both single, you wanna be around each other all the time, and you'd be good together. You'd be good for each other. I don't see a single damn problem here, so what's the holdup?"

"Language, Carl," Rick sighed. "I'm not so sure he feels the same--"

"Don't give me that bullshit."

"Carl!"

"You're not blind and neither am I. You see the way he looks at you and how he acts toward you compared to other people. He lets you get away with a lot of stuff that other people can't. He lets you touch him, he lets you get close to him, he's open with you, he lets himself go when he's around you. He likes it here, with us. He likes me and Judith too, not just you. He hates when it's time to leave, and you can tell because he drags around and makes excuses and tries to draw it out. He allows you to call him, anytime, just to plug in a TV that you unplugged to get him here," Carl sends him a look, raising his eyebrows as he pushed himself off of the wall. "You like him, I like him, Judith likes him, your friends like him, your family likes him and he likes us. Neither of you wants to be alone, neither of you deserves to be alone, so you shouldn't be. You should be together."

Rick is nearly in tears by the time Carl finishes, biting his lips and playing with his fingers as he mulls over the young boy's words. Everything he said--It was true, no doubt, but it just...Things are more complicated than Carl made them seem...Aren't they?

"What, are you asking me to ask him to move in?" Rick half-jokes.

"He basically lives here anyway," Carl shrugs. Rick eyes him, disbelief washing over his face. Surely the boy can't be serious? He and Daryl haven't even been on a damn date. They don't even talk over the phone unless Rick calls him to fix something...

"You're getting a bit ahead of yourself here, buddy," Rick mumbles softly.

"And you two are behind," And Carl sends him yet another stern look. "Look, maybe you two, for some reason, can't move in together or get married just yet, but at the very least, you can stop bullshitting and pretending you don't wanna be together. You can at least address it."

"Language...You think he'd marry me?"

Rick didn't even mean to ask the question out loud. It just slipped out. He'd never even thought of marrying Daryl before, but now he's just wondering why he didn't. He never thought he'd get married again but if he'd marry anyone it'd be Daryl. Daryl would never agree to that though, would he?

Would he?

He doesn't seem like the kind of guy that'd wanna get married, but he never failed to surprise Rick...

"I know he would. You just have to ask." Carl smiles, sitting next to Rick. "You get that right? **You** have to be the one to ask. Otherwise, it'll never happen. Daryl won't. He can't. Not right now. You can." And Rick realizes Carl is no longer talking about marriage, but everything else. Carl is, once again, right. It has to be Rick. It has to.

"You're really...Okay, with it?" Rick asks, staring down at the ground. Carl grins at him and pats him on the knee. "As long as you're okay with me wanting to ask out Ron,"

It was a smooth way to reveal to Rick that he was not only not straight, but also into their next door neighbor who happened to be a little older than him and who happened to not have the greatest of reputations.

"Of course, Of course! I-I'm okay with that, yeah...Well, Well maybe not Ron, but--"

"Thanks, dad! I'm gonna go pick Judith up from her gymnastics class." Carl hugged his dad for a short second before excusing himself quickly. Rick wanted to call after him, but he didn't, knowing he'd have plenty of time to talk to him about his no-good crush later on.

For now, he needed to focus on gathering his thoughts and figuring out a good way to ask Daryl Dixon out on a proper date.


	2. 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Carl takes Rick and Daryl on a date.

"Carl thinks we should get married," Rick started, head tilted, hands on his hips in his usual pose. He licked his lips, let his eyes flicker away from Daryl's for only a moment before coming right back, and shrugged his shoulders a little. "I just think we should go on a date."

Carl was shook.

Did his dad finally just ask Daryl out on a date? Did he really just tell the man that he thought they should get married? He was proud of his dad and a little pissed too. Who knew the old Grimes could be so damn sly?

"We should what?" Daryl grunted.

Rick's cool pose quickly turned into a tense stance, arms hanging in defeat at his sides and head hanging just as low. He stuttered over his words, trying to fix whatever the hell he'd just cracked before it was broken completely. "I-I think--Well, I just figured--He just thinks we l-like each other? I don't know if--I don't really know if we do. I just--I thought I'd humor him, you know? Just-and-you just--I--"

Carl rolled his eyes as he stood from the couch and strolled over to the front door where Daryl and his dad were standing. Daryl hadn't even been able to make it through the door before Rick had asked him out.

"My dad likes you a lot more than he's letting on and you like him too. I see the way you two look at each other, the way you act around each other. I see how close you are and I see how you treat him and--And I've already given this speech once today," Carl huffed and rolled his eyes. "I just want you two assholes to stop being assholes and go on a date."

Carl didn't know why he was so damn exasperated, but he was. Maybe it was because he was tired of walking into a room and seeing them staring at each other like it was the last time they'd ever get to see one another, refusing to get close to one another and not uttering a damn word. Maybe it was because he was sick of them behaving like dudebros around each other, giving each other awkward fist bumps and chest bumps and high fives and god-awful handshakes. If Carl had to hear the words "Buddy" or "Brother" one more time when, clearly, what he should be hearing is "Baby" or "Sugar", he was going to kill himself. Maybe it was because he was sick of all the sexual tension between the two men that he didn't even wanna think about. Maybe it was just because he thought Daryl and Rick were the two most deserving men in the world. They deserved to be happy, together, and the fact that they weren't yet was making Carl sick.

Whatever the reason may be, Carl was just sick of them not being together. He was close to losing his mind.

"Watch your mouth," Rick sighed. How many times was he gonna have to tell him that before he actually listened? "Listen, if Daryl doesn't want to be with me then he doesn't want to be with me. It's that simple. You'll just have to accept that--"

"Accept that my ass. I will not accept that. You two belong together and you can't tell me shit different. You're like...Jack and Rose. Fiona and Shrek...Rihanna and that one guy she was making out with in the water--"

"You can't just make us be together," Rick shook his head. "Doesn't work like that."

"It can," Carl argued. "I've watched you two making googly eyes at each other for months. Why do you hate yourselves? Why do you refuse to be happy?"

"Carl--"

"Daryl likes you just as much as you like him. Maybe even loves you. Why can't we skip this whole 'In denial' phase and get to the part where you two live happily ever after?"

"Daryl can speak for himself," Daryl cut in. "Kid's right." He nodded at Rick. "I do like you."

Rick and Carl grew quiet as they stared at Daryl who was avoiding eye contact with both of them like they were Medusa. It was silent for a few moments, none of them knowing exactly what to say, and Carl found himself slowly backing away from the scene. He figured it'd be best to let the two men talk amongst themselves for a few minutes. He turned away from them and headed toward the stairs with intentions of going to Judith's room and telling her to get ready.

"Um...I don't know what to say," Rick mumbled softly. "I wasn't really expecting you to feel the same way."

"Why not?" Daryl questioned, tilting his head as he finally looked at Rick. Rick shrugged his shoulders and leaned against the doorframe, crossing his arms over his chest. "I just figured that maybe I was imagining things. I thought I was just looking too much into the things you were doing for me, and then Carl talked to me and told me he saw it too. How different you act around me...Us. I wasn't expecting him to say anything or to notice it, I just thought it was all in my head. I'm glad to know I'm not crazy," He chuckled. "I didn't ever say anything because I thought I might ruin our friendship. You're not the type of guy I'd wanna lose. I didn't wanna risk it."

"I'm not easy to lose," Daryl shrugged, a small smile tugging at his lips. "I've...Liked you for a while now," He said it as if he was almost embarrassed and Rick tilted his head. "You're so put together and everything. You've got kids, a family. You're a cop. I just figured you wouldn't wanna be with somebody like me."

"I'm not put together," Rick chuckled. "I can't even fix my own TV."

They both laughed at that before growing silent again. Neither of them knew what to say or do now. They'd just gotten something off of their chests that they'd been holding in for a very long time. Where were they supposed to go from there?

Luckily, Carl, their savior, came to the rescue.

"Date night!" He exclaimed as he walked in with an excited looking Judith. She'd changed out of her gymnastics clothes and into some jean shorts and her brother's favorite band tee. "I'm going next door to collect Ron and then we're gonna go to Enid's dad's new smoothie place!"

"Carl--" Rick started. Judith quickly cut him off. "Dad, listen to Carl. He always knows best, and he gives the best advice ever. You should listen to everything he says from now on, honestly." She grinned. Carl patted her head softly and then smirked at his dad. He'd promised her two free drinks of her choice if she delivered those lines perfectly, which she did. Judith had plans of getting herself a Strawberry slushie and a lemonade slushie. If she played her cards right, she'd be able to convince Carl to buy her a third one too.

"Grabbing some drinks together won't kill you. It's a hot summer day, it'll be super refreshing, and you owe Daryl for all the times he's come running over here just to plug in the TV." Carl rolled his eyes as he grabbed the car keys. "I'm driving, too."

***

"Your tongue is blue," Judith informed.

"And? Yours is red." Andre defended.

Judith nodded and slouched in defeat.

Carl had hopped into the driver's seat of Rick's truck quick as lightning, Judith had grabbed her dad and Daryl's hands and yanked them along, practically shoving them into the truck before slamming the door shut and then hopping into the bed of the truck, smoothly talking Rick into letting her stay there for the ride as it was only a few minute drive. Carl had pulled around the curve, honked the horn a few times and yelled out the window, "Ron! Get your ass out here, we're going on our first date right now!" to which Rick responded by cringing and then slapping Carl's arm and warning him about his foul mouth, which Carl blamed entirely on his gym teacher and favorite neighbor, Negan. Ron had run out of the house, tugging his beanie on and yelling to his mom that he'd be back in a few hours. He climbed into the passenger side of the truck, gave Carl a sloppy kiss which lasted too long for Rick to be comfortable, and then nodded at the adults to greet them. Carl had almost made it off of their street when Judith yelled for him to stop the truck. He stepped on the breaks, yelled at the top of his lungs, "WHAT'S WRONG?!" To which Rick and Daryl cringed in response and Judith replied by shouting to her friend, who'd been sitting on the sidewalk playing with a large remote control car. "Andre! Wanna go to the smoothie shop with us?! Drinks are on Carl!" And Carl had quickly disagreed, but Andre was halfway to the truck before he could even correct his sister. Michonne, who'd been sitting on the porch reading a magazine, shouted for her son to be good and use his manners at all times. He gave her a quick nod and climbed into the bed of the truck with Judith, barely seated as Carl took off again.

Now, here they were.

Half the neighborhood was packed into 'Joshua's smoothie cafe', which was not unusual. Summer days were always spent either here or at Carol's ice cream parlor.

Rick and Daryl were seated near the back of the large smoothie place, sharing a banana smoothie as they chuckled at something or another. Carl, Ron, Judith, Andre, Enid, who was on her break and Negan, who'd been there all day and was on his ninth smoothie, were seated at a table near the middle of the place. They'd seen him and immediately surrounded him, asking how he'd been and what he'd been up to like they were all old friends of him who hadn't seen him in years despite the fact that they'd all seen him less than a week ago. Negan always pretended that he didn't like kids and didn't wanna see them if he wasn't in school as it was his downtime and he always needed the break from them, but they all knew he enjoyed their company. Negan loved kids and kids loved him, even though he wasn't always PG. He always told the best stories; He'd been through a lot in his life and he'd been wild as hell when he was younger so him running out of good stories to tell wouldn't be happening anytime soon.

In the tables beside them sat Maggie, Glenn, Rosita, Tara, Noah, Beth, Lydia and Sophia, who all happened to be staring at Negan as well, listening closely as he told them all about the time he'd gotten caught in the middle of a high-speed chase without even meaning to.

Rick glanced around the packed cafe before looking shyly at Daryl. "This is nice," He beamed. "Feels...Nice."

"I'm not usually a fan of crowded areas. Usually, I just like visiting quiet, rundown bars or something like that, but this place is nice. Feels like home." Daryl admitted. "I used to come here by myself a lot when it first opened...I always sat in the corner and watched everybody chat with their friends and families and feel so left out that I'd have to get up and leave before I could even touch my smoothie. I kind of hated it here. Didn't have anyone to come with. That was only a few months ago and I guess I've come a long way since then. I'm glad it's not like that anymore."

"I'm glad too," Rick smiled. "I would've come here with you if you'd asked."

"I know that now. In the future, I'll ask."

"I look forward to it," Rick winked.

"--Then I got stopped by one of the shithead cops," Negan rolled his eyes before patting Judith and Andre's heads and apologizing for his foul mouth. "Asked me what the hell I was doing and why I wasn't trying to get off the road if I saw that they were involved in a high-speed chase. I told him, 'First of fucking all, I was caught in the middle. If I'd slowed down I would've had half a dozen cop cars ramming into my ass and I wasn't about to have that.' We were on a freeway, the hell was I supposed to do? Then I said, 'Second, this is the only time I get to drive as fast as I want to.' I had somewhere to be anyways. Got there a whole lot faster than I'd intended to." Negan finished up his story and took a final sip of his drink before digging into his pocket and pulling out fifty bucks. "Grab us all some refills, will you?" He asked Judith. She crossed her arms over her chest and raised a brow. "I'm not an octopus, I don't have a billion arms. And I don't do anything for free, either."

"Octopus' have a billion arms?" Negan leaned back and feigned a shocked facial expression. "Your little boyfriend can help you carry them back, and you can keep the change."

"He's not my boyfriend!"

"She's not my girlfriend!"

"He's not her boyfriend!"

Judith, Andre, and Carl all spoke at the same time and Negan raised his hands in mock defense. Judith grinned as she snatched the money out of his hand. "I'm glad you told me to keep the change. I've got coupons to use," She snickered before heading toward the counter. Andre huffed as he stomped after her. "I'm helping you, so I get half!"

After asking for their refills, while Andre waited patiently for all the drinks to be made, Judith pranced away from the counter and walked toward her dad and Daryl's table. She slid into the seat next to Rick's smoothly and wrapped her arms around him as she eyed Daryl. "Are you two doing alright? Is your date going okay? Is Daryl gonna come live with us finally?" She quizzed quickly, looking between the two of them. Rick chuckled as she rested her head on his shoulder and rested his own head atop hers before looking at Daryl. "I don't think moving in together after the first date is a good idea, but we'll see where this goes, okay?"

The eight-year-old sighed and rolled her eyes. "Adults take forever to get anything done," She sulked. "Are you at least gonna kiss tonight?"

"Why don't you worry about kissing your own boyfriend, hmm?" Daryl teased, a smirk making its way on his face as he watched her blush and move to stand up again. "He's not my boyfriend and I don't wanna kiss him." She grumbled.

"Good girl," Rick patted her bottom twice before gently pushing her away from the table. "Now go torture your brother and stop harassing us, please."

"He's outside making out with Ron now," She whined before nearly skipping away. Rick's eyes widened as he hurriedly turned to look out of the window. Sure enough, there they were, in the bed of the truck, going at it like wild animals. Rick massaged his temple with his thumb and pointer finger before slowly standing up. "I hate to be the one that has to break that up, but--"

"I'll come too. I wanna see you embarrass them."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pure shit. Pureeeeeeee shit. I dunno if I'll write for this again. I wanna because I enjoy the environment I've created here. Friendly, neighborly, homey, all that shit, but IDKKK.


End file.
